Cat throws up after eating

My 18 year old cat has recently started throwing up after eating -- mostly the morning meal, but occasionally after the evening meal. She throws up almost all of the food, if not all of it. Then she is hungry again in an hour or so -- probably after she feels better. She is otherwise a very healthy cat. She was an outside cat when we got her -- a stray hanging out by an RV Park. She is an indoor/outdoor cat now. She sleeps

inside and is very loving, however she goes outside every chance she gets. She does not like using the cat box and prefers to relieve herself outside. Right now the throwing up is a real concern to me. Thanks so much for your help.

Answer by Kate
when we first got our own cat she would do exactly the same thing, after almost every meal but especailly in the morning she would throw up her food. we took her to the vets to make sure she didn't have a fur ball and explained to us that she was not chewing her food properly and was gulping it down which was too much for her stomach and that made her throw up. So we switched her to just dry food for a while, this seemed to slow her down and she didn't eat so much. dry food has a higher calorie amount and so they do not need so much of it. Now she is fine and we give her small meals of a mix of dry and wet food.
It could be worth having her checked out as she may have something wrong with one of her teeth which is making her gulp her food rather than chew it.

Comments for Cat throws up after eating

Click here to add your own comments

Don't take chances!
by: Anonymous

If your cat (with no prior treatment history for this problem and no prior vet examination to deal with this problem) is throwing up for more than 24 hours and/or is refusing food and/or water and/or is not urinating and/or defecating, then

*******wait NO longer than the 24 hours to get your cat into your vet****** for a check-over.

There are so many reasons a cat could be vomiting, from fairly minor to impending death, and it seems that the idea of "hairballs" is considered by experts far less likely and far less accurate as a cause than veterinary medicine experts once thought.

DO NOT WAIT AROUND IF YOUR CAT IS VOMITING, BECOMES LETHARGIC, WON'T EAT (OR DRINK), PEE or POOP!
throwing up kitty
by: Anonymous

i had this same problem with my 7 year old cat and my vet worked it out to be that he had developed a food allergy. he is now on a presription diet of rabbit and green pea and the throwing up happens only when he eats to fast now. something to keep in mind and ask your vet about.
A great help to the owner of an 17 yr old cat
by: Anonymous

Thanks for the sage advice. Very helpful in calming me down so I could assess the situation. My 17 yr old female cat, Buddha, is fine today. Hmmmm. She may be a poser after all.

Thanks much.

Click here to add your own comments

Return to Cat Questions Archive One.